Drying apparatus for hides, &amp;c.



No. 841,866 PATENTED JAN. 22, 1907.

e. w. HOLLIS. DRYING APPARATUS FOR HIDES, 6w.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 23. 1906.

UNI ED STATES PATENT oFFIo GEORGE W. HOLLIS. OF BosroN, MASSACHUSETTS,ASSIGNOR To SWIFT AND COMPANY, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION.

f DRYING APPARATUS Foe 'HIDES', are.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 23, 1906. Serial N. 318,329.

Iatented Jan. 22, 1907.

and Leather, of which the following description, in connection with theaccompanying drawings, is a specification, like characters on thedrawings representing like parts. Y This invention relates to a dryingapparatus especially adapted for use in tanneries for drying hides,skins, and leather, and particularly for drying leather having a coatingof material which requires exposure to the sun, such as patent or enamelleather.

I As now commonly practiced. and known to me hides or skins which areconverted into -patent and enamel leather are tackedorotherwise securedto suitable frames and have applied to them a plurality of coats of thecomposition or material which-forms the patent surface or enamel, andeach coat of material is allowed to dry in the air, each coat after thefirst coat being exposed to the sun to obtain the drying action requiredfor producing successful patent or enamel leather.

As now commonly practiced each frame, with'a skin thereon, is taken by aworkman after each coat of the composition or material is painted orapplied thereon and carried out into the yard, where it is placedagainst a fence or other suitable support and exposed to the air .andsuns rays until dried. This method of drying requires considerablehandling of the frames, is slow, laborious, and

expensive. So, also, in case of showers arising after the frames havebeen placed in the yard the workmen are obligedto carry each frame backinto the building before the skin,

has been dried and again carry it out into the yard after the shower,which adds additional labor to the workman and expense to the tanner.

Thepresent invention has for its object to provide apparatus with whichthe hides,- skins, or leather can be dried in a substantially continuousmanner with the least possivision is made for supporting theskin-carrying frames on the runway or support in such manner asto-enable the frames to be placed thereon and automatically carried outof the building in which the coating material is applied and into thesunlight. Provision is made for inclinin the frames so that the paintedor coated s 'n may be effectively pre-- sented to the action of the sunsrays. The frames may thus be conveyed in a minimum time so as to exposethe skins thereon to the sunlight-and air and to again place them un-'der cove r, either-when properly dried or to avoid being damagad byrain.

These and other features of this invention will be pointed out in theclaims at the end of this specification.

Figure 1 shows in perspective a sufficient portion of an apparatusembodying this invention to enable itto be understood; and Fig. 2, asection, on an enlarged scale, on the line 2 2, Fig. 1, looking towardthe left.

In the present instance one form of apparatus embodyim this invention isshown, which consists of a support in the form of a rail a, which restsupon and is suitably secured to an elevated structure comprising, asherein shown, cross bars or ties b and upright posts 0, which latter maybe set in the ground or be otherwise supported on a suitable base. Thesupport or rail (1 has cooperating with it a plurality ofskin-supporting frames (1, which may be of any suitable or usualconstruction, such as now commonly used in tanneries for drying hides,skins, and leather, and which in thepresent instance are provided attheir 'upper end with trolley or grooved wheels e,

which are mounted to turn on suitable pins or shafts f, secured to thetop pieces of the said frames. Each framed may and referably will beprovided with a pluraity of wheels e, which are located below the upperedge of the top piece of the frame and between the side pieces of the.same, so as not to interfere with the ordinary uses of the frameas, forinstance, so as to permit the frame with the skin it thereon to beplaced in the usual bakin -ovens, (not shown, but which arenow emp oyed'in the manufacture of patent and enameled leather.) The skinhmay besecured to the frame d in the usual manner, and, as shown, said skin issecured to the frame by cords 7'. l The elevated support or rail a maand preferably willv be inclined downw ar from the starting-point to theend, so that the frames d with the skins thereon may beautomatically-conve ed by gravity from the place or buildi w ere thefirst coating is applied to the p ace .or buildi where the final step inmaking the enamele or patent leather is carried on. The rail (1 islocated at one side of the upright posts 0, so that under normalconditions the frames d may hang vertically while traveling from oneposition to another, and in order to prevent the frames being arrestedin their movement or travel by striking the supporting-posts under theinfluence of the Wind a guard rail or bar m is extended outside of thesupportingposts and is secured thereto, so as to close the space betweensaid posts, so that if the frame 01 is swung by the wind toward theposts 0 it will engage the guardrail and be prevented frombeing swungbetween the posts 0.

Provision is made for maintaining the frames stationary in an inclinedposition when said frames in their travel have reached a osition wherethey are exposed to the sun. T is result may be accomplished in avariety of ways, and in the present instance one arrangement is shownfor this purpose. To this end a series of posts a may be employed, whichare arranged substantially parallel with the support a, and each post nmay be provided with a series of eyes 0, arranged at different heightson the post, and the frame (1 may be provided with an eye p, which isadapted to be engaged by one end of a hook or locking device r, theother end of which is engaged with one of the eyes 0 on the post a. Inthis manner the frame may be arrested in its travel and also inclined ortilted on the rail a as a pivot, so as to better expose the skin to theaction of the sun.

By engaging the hook 1' with an uppereye 0 on the post the framewmay bebrought into a position approximating the horizontal, as represented atthe right in Fi 1, and by engaging the hook 1' with one o the lower eyesthe frame may be brought into a position ap proximating the vertical.- In this manner the frames may be adjusted by the workman, if so desired,to conform to the position of the sun and obtain a more directprojection of the suns rays upon the skin, thereby eifect'- ing 'auniform drying of the skin in a minimum time. a

Provision is made for looking or holding the frame to the rail a a'ains't accidental 'dis engagement by the win while in an inclinedposition, and this may be accomplished by providing the rail a with arecess, groove, or undercut portion forming a projection or lip 10 belowthe tread of the rail, with which the flange on the wheel e engagesafter the manner represented in Fig. 2. l

The apparatus may be provided with two substantially parallel rails (1,located at opposite sides of the supporting-posts c, and the apparatusmay be so positioned or arranged as tovuse one for the morning sun andthe other for the afternoon sun, or both may be used at the same time.

In practice the apparatus herein shown may be arranged to extend fromone building through an open space into another building, thence throughanother open space into a third building, &c., according to the numberof coats of enamel or other composition which is applied to the skin,and in this manner the skin attached to a frame is automaticallyconveyed from the lace where the initial coat is applied to the s in tothe place where the finishing process is carried on, it only beingnecessary to rovide attendants for arranging the frames or exposure tothe sun in the open s aces referred to. It will also be observed t at incase of a shower or sudden rain the skins can be got under cover in theleast possible time, as it would onlfy be necessary torelease the exosed frames rom their inclined positions, w ereupon the said frameswould automatically start on their journey to the building into whichthe. su

port a-gravitates, or the said frames ma e quickly pushed back into thebuilding rom which they started. It will also be observed that the laborrequired to handle the frames is reduced to a minimum, and a mostefficient drying of the skins is effected in a mini mum time.

One form of ap aratus, which may be preferred, isherein sllown; but itis not desired to limit the invention to the particular constructionherein shown.

I claim 1. In an apparatus of the class described,

in combination, an elevated rail, uprights or posts to support saidrail, a drying-frame to which a skin is secured, trolley-wheels carriedby said frame and engaging said rail to support the said frame thereon,a guard-bar secured to said uprights or posts below the said rail toprevent said dryin -frame from entering the space between adjacent postsand be thereby arrested in its travel on said rail, and means to renderthe said frame stationary on said rail and to secure the same in aninclined position with relation thereto,

substantially as described.

2'. In an apparatus of the class described, in combination, an elevatedrail, uprights or posts to support said rail, a drying-frame to which askin is secured, trolley-wheels car ried by said frame and engaging saidrail to support the said frame thereon, a guard-bar secured to saiduprights or posts below the said rail, means on said rail to preventsaid trolley-Wheels being disengaged therefrom when said frame is in aninclined position, and means to secure the said frame in a stationaryinclined osition with relation to said rail, substantial y as described.

3. Inlan apparatus of the class described,

' in combination, an elevated rail, means to support said rail in itselevated position, a drying-fri-ime provided with means for engagingsaid rail to move thereon, and means to render said frame stationary onsaid rail and to secure the same in an'inclined position with relationthereto, to adjust said frame and the skin thereon to differentpositions of the sun, substantially as described.

4. In an apparatus of the class described, in combination, asubstantially continuous support, a drying-frame to which a skin issecured sustained by said support, and means to position saiddrying-frame on said support at an incline, substantially as described.

5. In an apparatus of the class described, in combination, an elevatedrail, means to support said rail in its elevated position, adrying-frame provided with means for engaging said rail to move thereon,and means to secure said frame in different stationary inclinedpositions with relation to said rail, substantially as described.

6. In an apparatus of the class described, in combination, an elevatedrail, uprights or posts to support said rail, a drying frame to which askin is secured, trolley-wheels carried by said frame and engaging. saidrail to support the said frame thereon, a guard extended longitudinallyof said rail between said posts or uprights to preventsaid frameengaging the same as the said frame is moved on said real, substantiallyas described.

7. In an apparatus of the class described, in combination, an elevatedrail, means to support said rail in its elevated position, adrying-frame suspended from said rail and movable thereon longitudinallyand into a position inclined outwardly with relation to the path oflongitudinal movement, and means to render said frame stationary on saidrail and to secure it in an inclined position with relation thereto.

8. In an apparatus of the class described,

in combination, a drying-frame to which a hide, skin or leather issecured, a support to sustain said frame while the latter is moved fromone position to another, and means to render said frame stationary onsaid rail and to secure it in an inclined position while on saidsupport, substantially as described. 9. In an apparatus of the classdescribed, in combination, a drying-frame to which a hide, skin orleather is secured, an inclined support to sustain said frame while thelatter is automatically moved by gravity from one position to another,and means cooperating w1th said frame to render the same stationaryonits support and hold the same in an inclined position with relation tosaid support, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed myname to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

Witnesses:

JAS. H. CHURCHILL, ARTHUR G. LYON.v

GEORGE W. HOLLIS.

